Alert archive / Florida / Flash Flood Warnings in 2009

Flash Flood Warning 45, NWS Mobile, AL

August 17, 2009Escambia County, Santa Rosa County, Florida; Baldwin County, Alabama

NWS Mobile, AL issued this flash flood warning at Aug 17, 2009, 9:57 AM CDT for Escambia County, Santa Rosa County, Florida; Baldwin County, Alabama. It was in force for 4 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Aug 17, 2009, 9:57 AM CDT (14:57 UTC)
Expired
Aug 17, 2009, 1:45 PM CDT
In force
4 hr
Issued by
NWS Mobile, AL
Area
Storm-based polygon
Flood severity
None

Counties Baldwin County, AL, Escambia County, FL, Santa Rosa County, FL

The radar

The Mobile radar (KMOB), 103 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 14:57 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The nearest sounding before it

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 12:00Z, 3.0 hours before the alert went out and 244 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Slidell Radar S, LA at 12:00Z on 2009-08-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1818 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Slidell Radar S, LA at 12:00Z on 2009-08-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -11 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
1818 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-6 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
562 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
8 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-11 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-7 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
WGUS54 KMOB 171457
FFWMOB
ALC003-FLC033-113-171645-
/O.NEW.KMOB.FF.W.0045.090817T1457Z-090817T1645Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
957 AM CDT MON AUG 17 2009

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  EASTERN ESCAMBIA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA...
  SANTA ROSA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF NAVARRE...
  SOUTHEASTERN BALDWIN COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF LILLIAN...

* UNTIL 1145 AM CDT

* AT 950 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS HAVE BEEN 
  MONITORING HEAVY RAIN ON RADAR OVER PARTS OF SOUTHEAST ALABAMA AND 
  NORTHWEST FLORIDA.

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO SEMINOLE...
  PENSACOLA REGIONAL A/P...PACE...MUNSON...MOLINO...MILTON NEAR
  WHITING FIELD...MILTON...MCDAVID...JAY...HAROLD...GONZALEZ...FERRY
  PASS...ENSLEY...COTTAGE HILL...CHUMUCKLA...CANTONMENT...BEULAH...
  BERRYDALE...BAGDAD AND ALLENTOWN

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THERE IS A HIGH RISK OF RAINFALL RATES OF 2 TO 3 INCHES PER HOUR IN 
THE WARNED AREA. EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE 
FLOODING OF SMALL CREEKS AND STREAMS...HIGHWAYS AND UNDERPASSES. 
ADDITIONALLY...COUNTRY ROADS AND FARMLANDS ALONG THE BANKS OF 
CREEKS...STREAMS AND OTHER LOW LYING AREAS ARE SUBJECT TO FLOODING.

MOST FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. NEVER DRIVE A VEHICLE INTO
WATER COVERED ROADWAYS. ONLY A FEW INCHES OF FLOWING WATER CAN SWEEP 
A VEHICLE OFF THE ROAD. TURN AROUND...DONT DROWN.

&&

LAT...LON 3037 8744 3037 8751 3066 8746 3084 8734
      3097 8731 3097 8680 3097 8679 3042 8680
      3035 8720 3036 8720 3046 8693 3051 8703
      3055 8701 3045 8709 3058 8716 3047 8714
      3038 8725 3034 8726 3033 8739

$$
1 follow-up statement
000 
WGUS54 KMOB 171646
FFWMOB
ALC003-FLC033-113-171845-
/O.EXT.KMOB.FF.W.0045.000000T0000Z-090817T1845Z/
/00000.0.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
1146 AM CDT MON AUG 17 2009

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE HAS EXTENDED THE

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  EASTERN ESCAMBIA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA...
  SANTA ROSA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA...
  EAST CENTRAL BALDWIN COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...

* UNTIL 145 PM CDT

* AT 1140 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED
  HEAVY RAIN CONTINUING OVER PARTS OF SOUTHWEST ALABAMA AND NORTHWEST
  FLORIDA.

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO PACE...
  MUNSON...MOLINO...MILTON NEAR WHITING FIELD...MILTON...MCDAVID...
  JAY...HAROLD...GONZALEZ...COTTAGE HILL...CHUMUCKLA...CANTONMENT...
  BERRYDALE...BARRINEAU PARK...BAGDAD AND ALLENTOWN

RADAR ESTIMATES INDICATE THAT LOCALLY UP TO 3 TO 4 INCHES OF RAINFALL HAS 
OCCURRED OVER PARTS OF THE WARNED AREA SINCE AROUND 9 AM THIS MORNING. 
ADDITIONAL HOURLY RAINFALL TOTALS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES COULD BE POSSIBLE
THROUGH THE EARLY AFTERNOON HOURS. 

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF SMALL
CREEKS AND STREAMS...HIGHWAYS AND UNDERPASSES. ADDITIONALLY...COUNTRY
ROADS AND FARMLANDS ALONG THE BANKS OF CREEKS...STREAMS AND OTHER LOW
LYING AREAS ARE SUBJECT TO FLOODING.

MOST FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. NEVER DRIVE A VEHICLE INTO
WATER COVERED ROADWAYS. ONLY A FEW INCHES OF FLOWING WATER CAN SWEEP 
A VEHICLE OFF THE ROAD. TURN AROUND...DONT DROWN.

&&

LAT...LON 3037 8744 3037 8751 3066 8746 3084 8734
      3097 8731 3097 8680 3097 8679 3042 8680
      3035 8720 3036 8720 3046 8693 3051 8703
      3055 8701 3045 8709 3058 8716 3047 8714
      3038 8725 3034 8726 3033 8739

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Mobile, AL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 16, 7:45 PM CDTFlash Flood WatchMOB23 hr
Aug 16, 8:46 PM CDTRiver Flood WarningMOBOkaloosa24 hr
Aug 17, 4:15 AM CDTHurricane Local StatementMOB3 hr
Aug 17, 6:17 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningMOBOkaloosa5 hr
Aug 17, 12:15 AM CDTHurricane Local StatementMOBButler, Crenshaw, Monroe4 hr
Aug 17, 3:12 PM CDTCoastal Flood StatementMOB3 hr
Aug 17, 4:24 PM CDTSmall Craft AdvisoryMOB113 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Florida, 2009Flash Flood Warnings in Alabama, 2009Every flash flood warning in 2009

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.